Devotional service assistance table for church use



W. L. HARRIS Aug. 2, 1960 DEVOTIONAL SERVICE ASSISTANCE TABLE FOR CHURCH USE 2. Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept.

IN VEN TOR.

1960 w. HARRIS 2,947,584

DEVOTIONAL SERVICE ASSISTANCE TABLE FOR CHURCH USE Filed Spt. 26, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 U U l-\ 44 58 28 50 52 54 Fig.5 i

William L. Harris IN VENTOR,

United States Patent Office 2,947,584 Patented Aug. 2, 1960 DEVOTIONAL SERVICE ASSISTANCE TABLE FOR CHURCH USE William L. Harris, 700 W. Green St., Tallulah, La. Filed Sept. 26, 1958, Ser. No. 763,556

3 Claims. (Cl. 311-2) The present invention relates to a table and a religious service assistance curtain and complemental erecting and supporting means therefor expressly adapted for use during the penod of carrying out and appropriately handling adoration services in a church.

Although suitable and perhaps appropriate for other devotional activities and practices of worship the particular embodiment of the invention herein disclosed has been devised and perfected with a view toward assisting those whose prayers are to be offered while for example the Lords Supper is being administered. Constructed and equipped as revealed the over-all structural adaptatlo'n has been called, properly, it is believed The Lords Supper Table Curtain.

Stated more specifically the concept has to do with a rollable fabric or suitable curtain the texture of which would be appropriate for display of a quotation or quotations from scripture in keeping with the devotional occaslon being reverently carried out. If desired, the curtain would also carry the name of the church and the name of the pastor. The curtain when in use is suspended within the confines of a marginally encompassing frame. The frame is vertically and horizontally adjustable and provided with hooks or appropriate means to suspend the curtain. A base or panel is also provided and the frame, in turn, is provided with suction cups which removably support the frame on the panel. The panel, in turn, is adapted to be placed upon the top of a suitable support such as a table.

Novelty is predicated on the construction set forth wherein the frame is detachable from the base or panel, and the panel is removable from the table. The frame too is collapsible so that its components may be arranged in compact and convenient form for storage. Other accoutrements symbolic of the occasion and purposes of use, such as vases for flowers or palms are also provided.

Other objects, features and advantages will become more readily apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing, wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the views:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the structure showing how it is made and set up for devotional service usage.

Fig. 2 is a view also in perspective but showing how the curtain is folded and the frame is knocked down and collapsed with the parts compactly arranged for convenience, storage and handling.

Fig. 3 is a view in elevation observing the back of the frame and its complements and showing the details with greater particularity.

Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of the panel.

Figs. 5 and 6 are enlarged sections taken on the line 5-5 and 6-6 of Fig. 1.

With reference now to Fig. 1 in particular, the numeral 8 designates any suitable table that would be recognized as appropriate for church service needs. Here the table is a simple structure comprising a top 10 of appropriate area and supporting legs 12. suitable braced. The table may be considered as a part of the over-all combination including the structural means which is placed atop the table. This means, as before touched upon, is characterized by a generally rectangular panel 14 which constitutes a base. If desired it may be provided on its bottom with supporting pads, feet or the like 16 (Fig. 4). While considering this particular view it is to be mentioned that appropriate brackets, paired or otherwise arranged, are provided. These brackets have screw-threaded shank portions 18 and the shanks are fastened at 20 in any suittable manner to the bottom of the panel. The shank portions project and serve to accommodate screw-threaded socket portions 22 on vases or cups 24. These cups may be applied and removed as desired. They may also be used, depending on the season and time to accommodate palms 26 (Fig. 1) or other flowers if the occasion demands. In any'event this panel or base 14 rests removably on the table top 10. It, in turn, serves to support the knockdown frame which is generally denoted by the numeral 28. Here again the frame will be made of material suitable for religious and devotional service needs. For the purpose of this application the frame may be said to be of general rectangular form. It is also collapsible. It is perhaps well to start with the tubular bottom frame member or tube 30 and provided at suitably spaced points with depending shanks or the like 32 carrying suction cups 34. This tube is in turn provided at its ends with angle brackets which are denoted at 36 each bracket comprising a horizontal arm 38 which extends telescopically into the tube, being held in place by a setscrew 40., The vertical arms of the brackets are tubular as'at 42 and constitute sockets for insertable and remove able rod members 44 held in place by setscrews 46. The

upper end of each rod member 44 (Fig. 5) is provided bers 54 which fit telescopically into the end portions of the upper tube or frame member 56. Thus, the top and bottom frame members or tubes serve as sockets for the insertable and removable components in the manner shown and described. The top tube member is provided with hanger hooks 58 (Fig. 5) which serve to support grommets 60 surrounding openings provided therefor in the scripture or message display curtain 62. As before stated the curtain will vary in size and quality of material but its primary purpose is that it shall be of rollable material. For this reason there is a weighted hem 64 provided at the bottom as perhaps best seen in Fig. 1. This causes the curtain to hang down within the surrounding limits of the knockdown adjustable supporting frame 28. Considering Figs. 1 and 3 (details shown in Figs. 4 and 5) the reader will now have obtained a clear and comprehensive understanding of the structural aspects of the invention. It is to be added, however, that since the size of curtains may and do vary the frame is extensible in a lengthwise direction and also vertically adjustable to accommodate readily insertable and removable scripture curtains. By simply removing the nuts 50, the top frame member may be dismantled. The extensible rod members 44 may be telescoped into the tubular arms 42 or completely removed, and the corner or L -bracl ets 36 may be merely folded up in the manner illustrated in Fig. 2. It follows that Fig. 2 shows how the knockdown frame 28 may be dismantled and compactly folded and how the curtain may be folded atop a panel so that everything is in readiness for convenience of handling and. storage. The flower cups or vases 24 may be removed if desired by simply unscrewing them.

Since the invention, patentably speaking, is primarily directed to the structural aspects of the concept it is services or mode of performance or perhaps even to stress the general reversent appearance of the combining components employed so as to be in keeping with spiritual worship needs or active participation by the pastor and worshipers.

' The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling Within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. In a structure of the class described, a horizontally and vertically adjustable knockdown frame comprising a lower tubular frame member provided with suction cups for attachment to a support, a pair of generally L-shaped brackets, each bracket having rod members telescopically and removably fitted in cooperating end portions of said tubular member, also including vertical tubular members hingedly mounted, rods mounted adjustably and removably in the tubular members, a horizontally disposed top tubular member, rods telescopically and removably mounted in the end portions thereof, and means sepanably and adjustably connecting the outer end portions of said rods with the tubular members of said L-sha-ped brackets.

'2. A religious service and assistance table for use in a church or elsewhere, a portable supporting table, a base panel removably mounted atop said table, a flexible foldable curtain containing a quotation or message from scripture, and a frame, said frame being removably mounted on said base panel, said curtain being re- 4 movably suspended within the confining and supporting limits of said frame, said panel being provided with ornamental vases adapted to contain palms, flowers, or the like, said frame being provided with suction cups whereby it may be removably attached to said panel, said frame being of knockdown form so that the complemental components thereof may. be collapsed and compactly arranged for convenience of storage and handling. 3. A service assistance table for religious use in the church or elsewhere comprising a fiat panel adapted to be removably placed for use atop a portable table, and a collapsible frame having a bottom frame member provided with suction cups removably mounted on said panel, said frame being adjustable horizontally and vertically, a rollable and readily attachable and detachable message-carrying-curtain removably suspended by and Within the encompassing limits of said frame, said frame comprising a bottom tubular member, a top tubular member in spaced parallelism relative to the bottom tubu; lar member, hinged brackets of folding form having rod members telescopically fitted in end portions of the bottom tubular member, and vertical tubular members equipped with extensible and retractible rods, said rods having their upper ends separably connected with adjacent cooperating ends of the first named rods.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 905,965 Wilde Dec. 8, 1908 981,529 Cantrell Ian. 10, 191'! 2,169,183 Fish Aug. 8, 1939 2,174,068 Citron Sept. (26, 1939 2,556,261 Dubach June 12, 1951 2,611,672 Ohlsson Sept. 23, 1952 Carpenter Sept. 1, 1953 Juan-n t 

